[Bill Brightly]

The view behind the upper tee (if you climb a few feet through the scrub), is quite spectacular. Some day, a golf course may run through the property below as well.

Yeah, my foursome definiitely slowed down here when we had to wait for Brett Morrissey to walk up un the dune behind the tee and route the third course...

[David_Elvins]

Yeah, my foursome definiitely slowed down here when we had to wait for Brett Morrissey to walk up un the dune behind the tee and route the third course...

There seemd to be a nice tract of land to the left of 14.  Does anyone know if the reason that the flat land was used instead of this land was so that you could get a hole or two out and back to the "third course" from the Lost Farm clubhouse. 

13A looks like it would fit nicely into the routing of such a course if it was ever built. 

[Bill Brightly]

Yeah, my foursome definiitely slowed down here when we had to wait for Brett Morrissey to walk up un the dune behind the tee and route the third course...

There seemd to be a nice tract of land to the left of 14.  Does anyone know if the reason that the flat land was used instead of this land was so that you could get a hole or two out and back to the "third course" from the Lost Farm clubhouse. 

13A looks like it would fit nicely into the routing of such a course if it was ever built. 

Wow, that is a great point. I was wondering why such great land was left "landlocked" between the clubhouse, the flat land holes and the water. Maybe holes could play through Lost Farm to get out to the water and back as you suggest.

[Kevin Pallier]

I loved 13a - a tip for everyone - don't go long !!

[Kyle Henderson]

At 263 meters from the tips, the “14th” (15th) hole is considered a reachable downhill par 4, though it is usually played in a headwind.


Predictably, driving the green should ensure the best score. Just short of the green but past the fairway bunkers lies a trough of fairway from which a simple pitch is played down the longest axis of the green. Naturally, this richly rewarded angle of attack is fraught with peril for anyone that strays just a bit to the right.


Most mortals will end up left of this bunker and face an awkward wedge shot to a narrow, elevated green.


Shots that finish close to the bunker will still have a reasonably forgiving approach angle…


…whereas shots that travel pin high but left (right edge of this photo) require lofted pitches from tight lies to a very narrow surface. Weak efforts from below will often grant golfers at least one more chance to try the same shot. Fortunately, a mound at the green’s back/right corner can be employed to stop the ball.


Here is a wider angle looking back, with the tee box near the right edge of frame.

[Patrick Kiser]

I know Mark had issues with the marram to the right, but I absolutely loved this hole.

Totally driveable, but pay the price for failing.

Options are there and what a view from atop.

Fun green with challenging contours and the falloffs around the green make for some challenging recoveries.  Some banking onto the slopes to the green can be attempted as well.

I can only imagine this thing with some wind.

It also comes at a point in the routing where it brings the barometer back way up, thus making it that much more memorable.

A wonderful short par 4 in my opinion.

[Bill Brightly]

This truly is a great short par 4. Assuming you fail to drive the green (I can't reach it) there are just so many different possible shots to play, including using the back right slope to feed the ball to the pin. On Saturday I think I ran through 5 possiblities for my 30 yard approach, including putting, finally settling on the "bak slope" plan, pulled it slightly, and the ball curled all the way to the back corner of the green, leaving me a dead down hill putt.

Very cool spine running up the middle of the fairway towards the hole, the right side of which presents the best approach to the green, but this target line off the tee brings the right fairway bunker into play. A very well conceived hole.

On the 4-club wind day, I thought I'd hit a fade and let the wind bring it back,  double crossed myself and yanked it left into the marrum, lost ball # 5...

[Mark_F]

I know Mark had issues with the marram to the right

Not for me, Patrick, since I am never going to drive near the green.

As always, my thoughts are with my fellow man.  I thought Scott hit a pretty good drive on Saturday morning that just missed the green, but it was never seen again. 

It's a pretty good hole, and perhaps the only real highlight on the back nine. I had thought the back section was too small and contoured to use, but saw some nice shots played to it.

[Kevin Pallier]

.....I absolutely loved this hole.

As did I - particularly to a back pin - great use of a small shelf.

The closer one flirts with the bunker the more they see of the green. So many options available squeezed into such a small meterage.

The hole reminded me of aspects of #16 Friars Head and #17 RMW.

[Matthew Delahunty]

The hole reminded me of aspects of #16 Friars Head and #17 RMW.

Kevin,

Good to hear you say this.  I've only seen Friar' Head 16 in photos but when I was taking photos of 14 at LF from behind it struck me there was a similarity.

14 was the standout hole for me on the back 9.  It would be interesting to hear how Coore chose his routing for this hole because there are so many options to route a hole when standing back on the tee - eg. a green on the dune to the left, or run a par 5 through the valley below the restuarant.  In some ways the present greensite is one of the less obvious spots to the untrained eye, so plaudits for finding it and making a fantastic short par 4.

[Kyle Henderson]

Running between towering dunes and an arching coastline, the 178 meters-long 16th “15th” hole enjoys a setting reminiscent of the links at Cruden Bay.


While much of the bunkering is placed well short of the green, with the wind coming in hard from the right it is conceivable that these traps will affect play. There is a bunker pin high/left set to protect par on calm days.


Most players will contend with a large swale that runs along the front and right edges of the green. Long and left, a grassy bank will catch shots and feed them back onto the surface.


Recovery shots may be pressured by the thoughts of a gallery watching in the restaurant/temporary pro shop above.


Here is an early morning view looking back to the tee across the right-side swale.

[Kevin Pallier]

The hole reminded me of aspects of #16 Friars Head

Kevin,

Good to hear you say this.  I've only seen Friar' Head 16 in photos but when I was taking photos of 14 at LF from behind it struck me there was a similarity.

Matthew

I've attached a couple of photos of #16 FH for comparison.

A front on view of #16 FH - one can clearly see the fallaway to the left and trouble right. Whilst the green is much more narrower and contoured at LF the setups are somewhat similar.



Here is a few from the back of #16 at FH - again one can see a right hand sided bunker up the fairway



As soon as I saw #14 LF from the tee a #16 FH immediately sprang to mind.

[Scott Warren]

Wow, I've missed a lot in a couple of days.

Not to back the truck up too much, I think 14 might be the best short four on either course. Mark makes a fair point about the grass on the right, especially seeing as, if I'm not mistaken the prevailing wind here is a cross-wind from the left - ie. blowing balls towards thast hillside?

The greensite is just ace, and it was great to watch Bill working through the 1001 options he had on his second shot.

There really is a huge benefit for hugging the right, even if you can't drive the green. Anywhere between the bunker and the green gives a fantastic line in and anything down in the bowl on the left is as awkward as hell.

I'm not such a big fan of the 15th, perhaps because it's somewhat reminiscent of a hole or two on the other course.

[David_Elvins]

I think Scott summed up 14 well. A fantastic hole.

I was a little disappointed with 15.  On our last round there, the four of us hit one shot over the left bunker, one shot over the right bunker, one shot in the middle of the green and one shot towards the back of the green.  3 balls finished with 1 foot of each other. the other was 1 yard away.  Admitedly we were playing down wind and there would be less run into the wind. 

[Bill Brightly]

Wow, I've missed a lot in a couple of days.

Not to back the truck up too much, I think 14 might be the best short four on either course. Mark makes a fair point about the grass on the right, especially seeing as, if I'm not mistaken the prevailing wind here is a cross-wind from the left - ie. blowing balls towards thast hillside?

The greensite is just ace, and it was great to watch Bill working through the 1001 options he had on his second shot.

There really is a huge benefit for hugging the right, even if you can't drive the green. Anywhere between the bunker and the green gives a fantastic line in and anything down in the bowl on the left is as awkward as hell.

I'm not such a big fan of the 15th, perhaps because it's somewhat reminiscent of a hole or two on the other course.

Yeah, because even theough I hit a very long drive, I went straight down the middle of the fairway, and had to come into the green from the left. A much harder shot than yours, which was sitting beautifully on the right, just below the hole, maybe 30 meters away. By the way, very gutsy shot you hit from there Scott...was it 40 or 50 feet short of the cup?

[Scott Warren]

By the way, very gutsy shot you hit from there Scott...was it 40 or 50 feet short of the cup?

I'd forgotten about that What can I say, I'm a player!

[Patrick Kiser]

The 16th...

Not too shabby of a par 3.  Tough call to say if it's their better par 3 on the course.  I'm about ready to say it is eventhough I kind of like the 6th, 13a/14 and 17th too.  However, I think the intangibles can't be dismissed on this one.  What an amphitheatre and view!

On the afternoon round, I was very lucky to pull off a shot that appeared destined for the dune to the left.  Somehow someway it landed on the left edge then turned all the way back to then roll to the back right pin.  Missed the birdie putt, but it sure was fun to stand on the tee and see it all happen.  Definitely a good thrill and that makes for a good memory.

Upon approaching the green, you begin to see and realize just how much is going on.  There are all kinds of ways to attack this green.  Certainly from the tee, but just as much for a recovery situation.  I think this is one of the better greens on the course and deserves more examination.

Get yourself stuck on the dune to the left is going to set you up for a challenging recovery ... and you have the audience as Kyle states.  But what a recovery if you pull it off.

I didn't give much thought to the huge trap to the right and short of the green, but it certainly appears to hug the green when in fact it doesn't.  A little deception could go a long way and I'd hate to get in there.

Then throw in the wind...

So ya ... I liked t.  All the ingredients seem to be present on this one.

[Kyle Henderson]

The “16th” 17th hole runs straight into the prevailing wind alongside the 1st, culminating with a green site tucked around the dunes on the right.


From ground level, it is harder to discern exactly what lies in store.


In calm conditions, a long drive past these left-side bunkers is ideal.


Anything short or right of this position will be blocked out by the right-hand dune.


Past the prominent fronting bunkers, one catches a glimpse of the small mounds along the green’s left edge and the larger hump at the far right corner.


Looking back, the green contours appear quite benign next to the undulations that surround the putting surface.

[Bill Brightly]

Given that this is a flat piece of land, I really liked this hole. Subtle deceptions throughout. A cool sense of uneasiness about where to aim the drive, and a really neat greensite. Given the prevailing headwind, the architect has given you a way to hit a low running shot to the green, but bunkers left and right loom.Although I've never been there, I imagine this is the type of land you would see at Sand Hills.

Of course, I hit a weak block on the 4 club wind day...lost ball #6 and only two balls left in my bag...

[Kyle Henderson]

Given that this is a flat piece of land, I really liked this hole. Subtle deceptions throughout. A cool sense of uneasiness about where to aim the drive, and a really neat greensite. Given the prevailing headwind, the architect has given you a way to hit a low running shot to the green, but bunkers left and right loom.Although I've never been there, I imagine this is the type of land you would see at Sand Hills.

The only relatively flat hole at Sand Hills is #8. Aside from the short (May-November) season, the Sand Hills is property is unparalleled in its suitability for great golf.

[Patrick Kiser]

Couple of supplemental pics...

15th










16th

[Matthew Delahunty]

The 16th was the most hotly debated hole of the weekend.  It will be interesting to see if that debate continues here.

I really liked the hole.  I think Coore did really well with the most uninteresting piece of land on the two properties.  If this hole was found on a Scottish links I don't think there'd be such debate as to its quality.  But I suppose the division among the guys is a measure of how good the courses are at Bridport.

[Sven Nilsen]

Haven't chimed in for a bit, so forgive me my backtracking.

13 - loved the amphitheater setting of the green and the way you feel like you're turning a corner and heading back into the dunes.  Key to me was to avoid getting blocked out to the right, thus lengthening a hole that plays into a wind tunnel.  I thought the wide fairway gave you plenty of room for error, but the hole rewarded anyone that could manage a drive hugging the left side.  The ability to run a ball onto the green fit a hole where you might have a long club in your hand on the approach.

13a - wasn't very enamored with this hole and thought it disrupted the flow from 13 to 14.  Great green, but the walk back to the tees tainted my view of this little par 3 and how it fit into the course.

14 - maybe my favorite hole on the properties.  Everyone needs to play this one into a stiff breeze, as the ability to take it on the direct line to the green is no longer an option (even my lilliputian drive cleared the right bunker on Saturday).  Thought the raised green and the various bumps and backstops surrounding it made for interesting decisions on what club to pull and what line to play to get any kind of benefit on a slight miss.  Watched Sean Walsh run a ball perfectly up the back slope and feed back to the pin on Thursday.

15 - again, another hole that shows its teeth when the prevailing wind is up.  I hit driver here and on 17 on Thursday.  I thought the left side pin was a lot harder to find than the back right pin we had on Saturday.

16 - Bill Brightly has it right in the sense of unease created on the tee.  You know the play is as far left as you can get, but with the wind most likely in your face, many will opt for the safety of the right side.  Too bad, because now you've created a blind shot over the bunkers (still doable, as my opponent proved Saturday morning), but I'd much rather have a look from the left where I am playing through the opening to the green with a sight line to the pin.  As mentioned earlier, there's a subtle cant to this green even though it looks almost completely flat.  I think the mound on the back right creates an optical illusion of some kind making most think the green runs the opposite of the front left to back right slope that is present.

Looking forward to the last two holes, and to reading the subplot of this thread (aka Bill Brightly and the disappearing Titleists).

[Scott Coan]

I could not get over the complete FLATNESS of the 16th green.  Patrick has some good pics showing this in reply# 170.  The only thing differentiating it from a giant snooker table is the little hump at the very back center of the green.  I absolutelty smashed my drive down the left center and had a 3/4 wedge in.  Thought I hit a really good approach only to find I was a good 30-40 feet short.  I swear the putt did not break more than a half-inch.

I left the green wondering why on earth would they build such a completely flat green - it had to be on purpose.  It did make my wedge shot very difficult to gauge as the relative "nothingness" of the greensite made it difficult to determine how deep the green was.  Perhaps this was the intent??

[Patrick Kiser]

I could not get over the complete FLATNESS of the 16th green.  Patrick has some good pics showing this in reply# 170.  The only thing differentiating it from a giant snooker table is the little hump at the very back center of the green.  I absolutelty smashed my drive down the left center and had a 3/4 wedge in.  Thought I hit a really good approach only to find I was a good 30-40 feet short.  I swear the putt did not break more than a half-inch.

I left the green wondering why on earth would they build such a completely flat green - it had to be on purpose.  It did make my wedge shot very difficult to gauge as the relative "nothingness" of the greensite made it difficult to determine how deep the green was.  Perhaps this was the intent??

Scott,

The more I thought about it after our round, the more I thought this hole absolutely needs wind.  I'm convinced that's absolutely critical.  At least to make it a little more interesting.  I have to also remind myself about the "resort" intention.

Otherwise, it's simply a break in the action to give you a breather before finishing off.  Not a bad thing, but I already felt like I had my "break" earlier on this back nine.

It's also about the routing and it's sequence I feel.

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